Paper-holder.



PATENTED NOV. 17', 1903.

A. E. SEXTON.

PAPER HOLDER. APPLICATION FILI-fi) MAR. 31, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented November 17, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR E. SEXTON, OFLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNORTO SINGLE- SHEET PAPER GOMPANY, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORA TION OF CALIFORNIA.

PAPER-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 744,119, dated November 17, 1903.

Application filed March 31, 1902. Serial No. 100,876. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR E. SEXTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, Los Angeles county, State of California, have invented certain Improvements in Paper-Holders, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to certain improvements in devices of that class for containing :0 a quantity of sheets of paper from which single sheets may be consecutively withdrawn.

One object of the invention is to provide a simple and economical form of holder in which the sheets of paper may be packed and sold,

the holder being destroyed after all of the sheets are removed.

A further object is to provide an efficient means for forwarding the sheets of paper in the holder in the direction of the delivery-slot.

2o A still further object of the invention is to so construct the walls of the discharge-slot as to project the edge of the sheet of paper to be discharged for a slight distance beyond or away from the end wall of the holder or casing in convenient position to be caught and withdrawn from the casing. I

A still further object of the invention is to so construct the discharge end of the holder or casing that the column of paper will be sup- 3o ported at about the center and pressure on the fold-lines of interfolded paper prevented, thus enabling the ready turning and discharge of interfolded sheets without danger of tearing.

A further object of the invention is to so 3 5 construct the holder or casing as to provide for the ready starting of the first sheet through the discharging-slot.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a cheap, convenient, and durable 0 means for securing the holder or casing in position.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the claims, it being understood'that various changes in the form, proportions, size, and minor details of the structure may be made without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advan tages of the invention.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a vertically-disposed paper-holder, a portion of one side of the holder or casing being broken away in order to more clearly illustrate' the construction. Fig. 2 is a sectional plan View of the same. Fig. 3 is a perspective View of an outer shell or hanger having a portion of its side broken away to show the paperholder in position. Fig. i is a perspective view of a modified form of paper-holder, a portion of the side and back being broken away to illustrate the construction. Fig. 5 is a view of one end of the front portion of a holder.

Similar numerals of reference are employed to indicate corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

The vertical holder is formed of stiff paper or cheap material of any kind bent and secured in such manner as to form an inclosing box 1, which, as shown in Fig. 1, may be substantially rectangular in form, the top and bottom portions 1 and 4 being parallel with each other and the front and back sections 3 and 5 being disposed at right angles thereto and'parallel with each other. In the lower portion of the holder is an inclined floor or false bottom 6, extending from the back 5 downward toward the front and bottom of the holder and forming an inclined support for a number of sheets of paper 8 which move by gravity toward the front of the box and are held in convenient position to be successively Withdrawn through a vertically-disposed discharge-slot 7, formed in the front portion 3 of the holder.

The holder or casing is adapted for the reception of sheets of inter-folded paper. sheet is folded on itself to form two leaves, and the folding-lines of alternate sheets are oppositely disposed, the leaves being interfolded in such manner that the two leaves of each sheet will be held between the corresponding leaves of the sheets on each side thereof. With paper folded in this manner the withdrawal of one sheet through the discharge-slot will project a portion of one leaf of the next succeeding sheet in convenient Each position to be caught and withdrawn, and in this manner the sheets may be withdrawn successively until the contents of the holder are exhausted.

The lower edges of the sheets of paper rest on the inclined floors 6, and as the folds of paper are pulled from the holder through the delivery-slot 7 the entire body of contained paper has a gradual movement sidewise on its bottom edges toward the front of the holder, so that as a fold is withdrawn the following fold is in close proximity, thus insuring the pulling out of the edge of each following fold as fold by fold it is withdrawn from the holder.

To insure the forward movement of the tops of the sheets of paper equal to that provided for by theinclined fioor 6, I employ the spring or weight so placed that as the volume of the contained paper is reduced by withdrawals it shall press the tops of the remaining sheets toward the front.

Fig. 1 illustrates one form of forwarding device which it is preferred to employ. In this instance the back 5 of the holder is provided with an extension, which is bent downwardly and forwardly at 11, and thence inwardly at 12, bringing the loose end 13 against the inner surface of the back 5 and forming a forwarding-spring 10. The compressed folds at 11 and 12, intending to straighten, force the folded edge 12 forwardly against the contained paper to an extent sufficient to insure the desired result. This spring may be formed of paper or other material and formed of one or more pieces, as desired.

In Fig. 4 is illustrated a further modification of the top forwarding device and comprising in this instance a combined spring and weight. 14 designates a strip of strawboard or other suitable material attached to the inner surface of the back 5, as at 15, and .provided with scorings and folds at 17, 18, and 19, the end 16 being disposed parallel with the body of the strip and, if necessary, secured thereto. When the holder is hung in vertical position, the strip 14 is forced forward partly by the tendency of the folds l7 straightened and partlyby gravity, the upper and heavier end of the strip being in advance of the back 5 and insuring a forward movement of the upper portions of the sheets of paper.

In order to facilitate the withdrawal of the folded sheets of paper through the deliveryslot, the edges of the slot are thickened or widened in such manner as to provide for the projection of the end of each sheet to a position convenient for the user, the thickened edge of wall serving to prevent the clinging of the projecting leaf against the front of the box, the leaf being held out and away from the front of the holder, so that it may be conveniently grasped and withdrawn.

The walls of the slot may be widened or thickened in several ways, and, in Fig. 1, 20

illustrates a pair of quarter-round or similarly-shaped strips of wood or other material secured to the front of the holder in alinement with the walls of the delivery-slot 7. These strips may be placed on the inner surface of the front wall, as indicated in Fig. 3, and this latter arrangement is preferred, es.- pecially where a very large number of sheets of paper are contained in the holder and the weight of the paper tends in ameasure to retard or prevent the unfolding of the sheets. By placing the strips on the inner surface of the holder the weight of the body of paper is borne by the strips and undue pressure of the paper on the folding-lines is prevented. This permits of the ready unfolding of the sheet without unnecessary friction and without danger of tearing.

In Fig. 2 is illustrated another method of thickening the walls of the delivery-slot, and in this case the material of which the holder is formed is simply divided and thence bent either outwardly or inwardly at 22 to form angular flanges 21 and at the same time form the delivery-slot 7.

In connection with the delivery-slot it will be seen on reference to Fig. 5 that the bottom 4: of the holder is provided with a recess 23, in alinement with and forming an extension of the delivery-slot 7. This recess is for the purpose of allowing the convenient use of any pointed instrument, as a pencil 24, in starting the first fold of paper on beginning the use of the contained supply from the holder. This extension of the delivery-slot is in the case of vertical holders preferably in the bottom, although in some cases it may be on the top or at both ends of the slot.

In the vertical back 5 of the holder is a tongue or spur 25, formed by a short horizontal and two upward cuts and intended to serve as a hanger by being thrust down behind a support secured to the vertical wall. A double-pointed tack 27, so driven as to leave a slight space behind the cross-bar for the spur, would answer the purpose. 26 is a reinforcement of paper or other material used in strengthenin g the hanger-spur, the broaden ed upper portion pasted or otherwise securely fastened to the inner face of the back 5', with the spur-section extending downward coordi nately with the spur proper.

In some cases the paper-holder may be used in connection with a separate supportingshell, and in such cases the holder will be formed of very cheap material and sold with the contained paper, the holder serving as a wrapper and being thrown away when the paper is exhausted. In such cases the shape of the holder is slightly modified, as indicated in Fig. 4, and is placed in an outside shell 28 through an opening 29 left in the back of the shell for the purpose, the lower portion of the holder being provided with a permanent inclined bottom for the reception of the correspondingly shaped lower portion of the holder. The shell is provided with keyhole- IIO slots for attaching the same over nail or screw heads to a wall, partition, or other support.

I In Fig. 3is illustrated one of the keyhole-slots 30, another being placed at the lower portion of the shell if necessary.

In either method of suspension is secured a vertical position of the back, such position being deemed essential to the proper working of the device as regards the inclined floor and the top forwarding device. The front of the holders may be either vertical or slightly inclined.

. Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. In combination, a holder provided with a vertically-disposed delivery-slot adapted to contain and serve sheets of interfolded paper through said slot,a downwardly and forwardly inclined floor for the support of the paper, and a top forwarding device secured to the back of the hold er and formed of a bent strip of material exerting pressure on the paper through the inherent tendency of the strip to reassume its initial or unbent position and the upper portion of said strip being further bent to form a weight held by gravity in contact with the paper.

2. The combination in a holder for containing and delivering interfolded sheets, of a casing having a discharge-slot in one wall, said wall being in a plane parallelwith the plane of the sheets, and means for holding a partlywithdrawn sheet away from and at an angle to the outer surface of said slotted wall.

3. The combination of a holder for containing and delivering interfoldcd sheets, of a casing having a discharge-slot in one wall,'said wall being in a plane parallel with the plane of the sheets, andadeflecting means extended outwardly beyond the plane of, the outermost sheet and serving to engage and hold a partlywithdrawn-sheet away from and at an angle to the outer surface of said slotted wall.

4. The combination in a holder for containing and delivering interfolded sheets, of a casing having'a discharge-slot in one wall, said wall being in a plane parallel with the plane of the sheets, the walls of said slots being thickened to hold a partly-withdrawn sheet away from and at an angle to the outer surface of said slotted wall.

' slot, the walls of the slot being formed by bending the material to thicken the edges of the slot and thereby assist in holding the projected end of the sheet outwardly from the surface of the holder.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this application in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ARTHUR E. SEXTON.

Witnesses:

EDWIN A. Mnsnnvn, FRANK O. VAUGHN. 

